


Alone in Your Head

by Cocopops1995



Series: Are We All Lost Stars (Shiro Week 2017) [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen, Hallucinations, Hallucinogens, Keith is worried, blackpaladinweek, bonding with new allies goes very wrong, freaky space mist, shiro is terrified, shiroweek2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2017-11-26
Packaged: 2019-02-07 06:09:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12834942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cocopops1995/pseuds/Cocopops1995
Summary: Shiro inhaled an alien mist that makes you see your greatest fears. Keith tries to comfort him. It doesn't work.





	Alone in Your Head

“Hunk, how much longer?” Keith asked, not even trying to hide the stress in his voice. 

 

“Another ten dobashes at least.” Hunk answered, his own voice tight with stress as well, although much better contained than usual. Probably because he was focusing on flying. 

 

In Keith’s arms, Shiro let out a low, distressed whine, his wide open eyes darting around, but not really seeing anything around him. 

 

Keith hushed him, “It’s okay. I’ve got you. We’ll be to the Castle soon.” 

 

As with all his previous attempts to calm Shiro, the words seemed to fall on deaf ears. At least Shiro wasn’t fighting him. That would have made this whole situation a whole lot worse.

 

“Can’t you go any faster?” he asked Hunk.

 

“I’m literally flying this hunk of junk as fast as it will go, Keith!” Hunk snapped. 

 

Keith closed his eyes as Shiro winced violently in his arms, as if being struck, and then let out a long breath. “I know, Hunk. I’m sorry.”

 

Hunk sighed, “It’s okay. Is he doing any better?” 

 

“No.” Keith answered. 

 

Shiro’s breathing turned ragged and wet. “Please… No…” and tears began streaming from his eyes.

 

Keith tightened his grip on Shiro, trying to let Shiro know that he was there through the touch, since his words didn’t seem to help. “It’s okay, Shiro. You’re safe. Please, hear me. You’re safe, I promise.” 

 

Keith heard the pod they were flying in’s engine’s complain as Hunk obvioulsy tried to coax just a little more speed out of it. 

 

“Hey, Keith. When you beat the Gorians up, I’m totally coming with, okay? And I’m pretty sure Pidge and Lance are gonna wanna help beat them up too.”

 

Keith sighed. He really did want to fight every one of the Gorian leaders right now. It was at their assistance that Shiro went alone with their most fearsome warriors to the sacred forest on their planet. Apparently it was some great honor to go through the forest. Only the greatest warriors were chosen to enter it. They were supposed to come out enlightened - with a better knowledge of themselves, or something. Keith didn’t really believe it, and neither did Shiro, but the Gorian leaders had insisted that Shiro go into the forest as a way for them to show how their gratitude to Voltron for freeing them from Galra occupation. 

 

Keith didn’t know what exactly went on in that forest, but Shiro and the warriors had barely been in there for an hour before a distress call had been sent out. With it came a message that only said that something was wrong with Shiro and the paladins needed to come get him immediately. The lions were not allowed near the sacred forest, though, and so the team was forced to split up since the pods the Gorians had, could only really take two people. So Keith and Hunk jumped in one and sped off to the forest, leaving Lance and Pidge to help Coran prepare for their arrival, and try to figure out what the heck could have happened. 

 

When Keith and Hunk arrived they found the group of soldiers standing around a nearly catatonic Shiro. At their furious demands for an explanation, the soldiers said that Shiro had a bad reaction to the “Mist of Knowledge” - which apparently caused a warrior to see his greatest fear to help him overcome it. 

 

Keith had nearly blown a gasket, only keeping his temper in check by sheer force of will. Hunk had managed not to totally explode, but he had yelled a little about how knowing that sooner would have been very helpful. 

 

When Keith had crouched down next to Shiro, who had been curled in the fetal position on the ground, he hadn’t reacted to Keith’s presence or voice at all. 

 

Without even waiting for any more explanations from the Gorian soldiers, Hunk had scooped Shiro up into his arms and walked straight back to the pod. Once in there, he told Keith to sit down and then set Shiro down in Keith’s arms. And that was where they were now. In an infuriatingly slow pod, on their way to the Castle to get Shiro into a pod.

 

Shiro whimpered and Keith closed his eyes at the sound. He hoped that Coran could fix this. He didn’t ever want to hear Shiro making the sounds he’s been making since they picked him up ever again. Keith didn’t know what Shiro was seeing, he didn’t really want to know, but from what he could tell, Shiro felt alone and abandoned. Feelings Keith knew all too well, and that Shiro should never, ever feel. 

 

“I’m right here, Shiro.” Keith tried again, “Please, please hear me.” 

 

If he could just get through to Shiro, maybe he could help make whatever Shiro was seeing just a little bit less terrifying. 

 

Nothing worked, though, and by the time they reached the Castle of Lions, tears had started to slip down Shiro’s face. The sight had brought tears to Keith’s own eyes, but he’d wrestled them back. Hunk on the other hand, had no qualms of allowing his own tears to fall. 

 

Coran was on the pod and whisking Shiro away before Keith could so much as shift in his seat. Pidge rushed in and told them that the Gorian leaders had an antidote for the mist. Apparently there were those who had a more adverse reaction to the mist than others did, they just hadn’t been expecting the black paladin of Voltron to be one of those. 

 

The antidote was administered but Shiro wasn’t actually injured in any way, so he was not placed in a pod. Rather, they had to wait for the antidote to take effect - which would neutralise the mist’s effects, but it would still be some time before the effects wore off completely. 

 

It was unanimously decided that Shiro not be left alone while the effects worse off. So they moved him to the rec room in the Castle that they used most often, and then Keith and the rest of the paladins huddled around him. Offering comfort and support however they could. 

 

The effects wore off painfully slowly, but the more it did, the more aware Shiro became of all of them around him, and the more he relaxed. Until he eventually fell asleep.

 

One by one, the others started nodding off too, exhausted by the stress of the day’s events. 

 

Keith was just on the cusp of sleep when he heard a gasp, and felt Shiro twitched against his side. Keith’s eyes shot open. He saw that Shiro’s eyes were open too. He was looking around in confusion, but he actually seemed to see what was around him. 

 

“Shiro?” Keith asked.

 

Shiro’s head whipped around to him and Keith was relieved to see recognition in his eyes. “Keith? What? I… I was alone. And then…”

 

“It’s okay. You’re not alone anymore, see?” Keith gestured with the arm that was not wrapped around Shiro’s shoulders to the paladins surrounding them.

 

Shiro followed his gesture, and took his time looking at each paladin, as if making sure that they were real. Eventually his eyes came back to Keith.

 

“We’re in the Castle of Lions. You’re safe. I promise.”

 

A small smile graced Shiro’s lips. “Thank you.” he said.

 

Keith shook his head, the thanks wasn’t necessary. “Go back to sleep.”

 

Shiro nodded and it was a testament to just how exhausted Shiro was when he dropped his head back on the couch pillow and passed right out

 

Keith smiled, glad that Shiro seemed to be back with them. He let his eyes slip closed and soon not a paladin was found awake in the Castle of Lions

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not completely happy with this one, but meh. Might rewrite it one day.
> 
> Find me on tumblr @noisypaintersong
> 
> Like my work? Please consider [buying me a coffee](https://ko-fi.com/W7W3KRCZ) :)


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